Teenage Race Car Driver Talks About Her Horrific Accident, And Recovering To Race Again

The automotive community, and much of the world outside the community watched in horror as 17-year-old Sophia Floersch’s Formula 3 racecar spun out, then literally flew several hundred feet through the air before ripping through a catch fence and slamming into a photographer’s enclosure at the Macau Grand Prix just over a month ago.

The teen phenom suffered severe injuries, most notably fractures to her spine. After a grueling eleven hours of surgery, Sophia began the road to recovery and now, just 6 weeks removed from an accident that could have easily taken her life, she’s discussing how quickly she wants to get back behind the wheel.

Speaking with ABC News, Floersch walks us through the moments leading up to the crash and explains that she knows she’s lucky to be alive. However, in true gearhead fashion, Sophia is ready to get back behind the wheel. She says in the coming weeks, she will begin training to get her body back in shape, working to rebuild her muscles after extensive bed rest following the accident and subsequent surgeries.

By February or March, though, she hopes to be back in a car, chasing her ultimate goal of competing, and winning, in Formula 1. While she certainly has some work ahead of her, Sophia speaks very matter of factly and seems to have a solid plan to return to driving, an attribute she’s surely gained over the 13 years she’s spent as a race car driver.

An ironic note mentioned at the end of the interview, Sophia only turned 18 in the past couple of weeks, which means that despite over a decade of experience behind the wheel, some of those spent in ridiculously fast and powerful cars, she’s just now become of legal age to drive in her native Germany. We wish Sophia all the best in her recovery and return to racing, as well as her future endeavors.